2013/02/22

3 years ago me an my girlfriend was walking by the tunnel below Waschaurstr. S-bahnhof in Berlin, when i heard these droney, repetitive, noise-trance-rock riffs and a monotonous drum beat. Instantly getting my attention, we stood there (exact location of second video) with a few other random people, soaking it in. I didn't want to leave but we had other engagements and for the rest of the night i couldn't stop talking about it, to the slight annoyance of my girl: "it was the PERFECT sound, right there on the street!" i had no idea who they were at the time but was 100% certain that it was significant.

3 years later i find out who they are, and that they've been jamming with old school heads (3rd Video with Michael Rother and Kluster)

obviously not going to post their album because it is commercially available, only going to say if you have worn out all the old Faust and Neu! records like me, it is a god send.

sorry about the formatting of this post, stupid blogger does not have their stupid shit together.

2013/02/04

Here is a first sign of life after rebirth: will just start posting things that i am enjoying immensely

This blog will be roughly about ethereal and listening music from the "West". For more of a rhythmic focus and the global South, from ancient to modern, go to NGOMA SOUND.

And yes, i am breaking the "non-commercially available" rule with this post. For you see, this awesome recording IS actually available for purchase on CD, for only $273.60, here (toward bottom of page). So if you have a problem, go buy it. lol.

Oh and i'm not certain this is the cover to this particular recording, as the Piano Sonatas don't appear on the cover? Whatever. Just LISTEN.

2011/12/17

when we started, Matchume just flew in from Portugal 2 hours before, and Congo from France the night before, and I had just played at Berghain the night before… so all 3 of us were running on zero to very little sleep. which might be reason that we forgot to bring a disc recorder to record off the board, so that’s why the camera stayed on the stage and didn’t move around this time, because it was attached to the sound board. also, the Camera man wanted to dance for the last hour, and stopped filming… which was too bad as that was the most amazing hour: 3000 jumping and screaming. But despite all this i’m still happy with the way it turned out.

2011/07/14

Thursday 14. July -- TONIGHT!NGOMASOUND @ Das Hotel - Mariannenstrasse 26A. / 11pm - 4am / 3 EURtasty beer is not the only good thing coming from the Czech Republic, Ross the Boss of Sonic Africa will arrive from Prague to lay down the law on block rocking beats from the Ivory Coast and beyond! And as always, with wicked live percussion by Marcel!

2011/07/09

2011/06/29

Umlilo means fire in Zulu, and this mix takes us back to the Dirty South for a scorching ride through raw township sound. Exchanging smooth for ruff, Umlilo focuses on the connection between ghetto Rap and current Electro, between modern SA House and its Kwaito roots.

Futurism in Africa never disconnected at all from the body: sound design does not become a solipsistic end in itself (even though every timber and texture is perfection itslef); song form stays 100% intact in the electronic club music format; and the beats never bang on aimless and without purpose -- robust machine groove reinterprets but absolutely incarnates the magic and essence of timeless rhythmic tradition.

2011/06/27

it is a new day, and change is coming. only 2 years ago who could have imagined Shangaan Super Groove Power and Ngoma Bass Action in the number 1 international temple of cold, hard, rigid and sexless techno?

"It’s fantastic, best thing I’ve heard for a long time. It’s how music should be"Karin Dreijer Andersson (The Knife)

Shangaan Electro is the street level dance phenomenon from South Africa that went global in 2010 on the back of a series of viral youtube clips (2 million hits and counting) and an acclaimed compilation on Honest Jon's that introduced the movers and shakers in this fast emerging micro-genre. Shangaan Electro replaces Shangaan music's traditional instrumentation with midi-keyboard sounds, re-pitched vocal samples and jacking four to the floor beats, then amps things up to breakneck speeds of over 180BPM. This is hyper-kinetic digital dance music custom made for weekly dance offs in Soweto, and it's getting ever faster...

This summer Shangaan Electro is hitting European festivals/clubs for the first time ever. Based on a Soweto street party, the live show will feature the stars of the Honest Jon's compilation – producer/mastermind and vocalist Nozinja aka 'Dog', the clown-masked Tshetsha Boys, alongside Tiyiselani, Nkata Mawewe and the fastest Shangaan dancers around.

on the Bass Warrior Soundsystem!______________________________________DJ Zhao brings classic and modern dance music together from all five continents, with focus on Africa. With in depth selections spanning wildly different time periods and locations, DJ Zhao’s remix and mashup work directly connects "East" and "West", acoustic and electronic, traditional and hyper-modern. Amateur ethno-musicologist and professional booty shaker, Zhao is an ambassador of boom not only talking about, but demonstrating through raw sound experience, the underlying unity of all earth cultures.

http://listn.to/djzhao______________________________________DJ Kokoro is a Glasgow based dubstep dj and producer, also running a crew called "neo tokyo bass" longside dj Endless and dj Crash.

http://www.myspace.com/chikuma______________________________________TowerblockRockerz is a dj and vj from Glasgow, spinning diverse and heavy hitting grooves and making sick psychedelic visuals to go with them.______________________________________Zeb Mcqueen is a reggae and otherwise vocalist who has worked with many different artists and released on Jahtari Records.

______________________________________Entry by Donation :£6 on the door..A proportion of any profits will got to buying beehives for Palestine.______________________________________BRING YOUR OWN BOOZE! (cans and plastic bottles only please..no glass)As we are not licensed and can't sell anything at all make sure you bring sufficient supplies.We are adjacent to the 13th note Pub so you can get a drink there first!

this thursday Sonic badman Pushking Noize will be coming from Zurich to share with us his unique bass perspectives! his recent interestingly pitched down remix of the huge Ghanaian tune Azingele for Akwaaba Music was my favorite on the remix EP.

2011/05/08

Having just played with the Soul Jazz Orchestra, Dj Bongo (Colombia) confided in me on skype that he is on top of his deep boogie game. together we will re-enact the Afro-Caribbean connection: real life musical exchange and cross-pollination in real time. In other words, IT'S TIME TO GET FUNKY.

2011/03/23

In Yoruba spiritual traditions (contemporary Ghana, Togo, Benin, and Nigeria) as well as its descendant Afro-diasporic faiths like Vodou, Santeria/Lukumi and Candomble, Eshu is an important Orisha.

The divine messenger between Gods and Man, Eshu is the gatekeeper, protector of travelers, guardian of the Crossroads, offering choices and reveals possibilities.

Often identified by the number three, and the colours red & black, Eshu represents the balance of nature, Day and night, creation and destruction, old age and youth.

Yet more than conduit between this and other worlds, Eshu is also a spirit of Chaos and a devious trickster, playing games and serving up mischief with the ultimate aim of waking people up and teaching them lessons.

So, in the spirit of Eshu, FUSION 3 represents the balance between traditional and modern, "east" and "west", listening and dancing. This mashup album stands at the crossroads between the musical worlds of Yoruba talking steel drums, Cuban piano, Indonesian Gamelan, Cameroon Mbira (thumb piano), Black Panther poetry, South African Jazz, etc., and the House and Techno club sounds of today.

I think it will play a few tricks on minds which insist on seeing the world in discontinuously separate compartments. ________________________________________________________

following the musical diaspora from Africa to the Caribbean and back again, the story of Rumba is one of the central narratives of modern music. This edition of Radio Ngoma explores amazing sounds from places like the Congo and Nigeria to Haiti, Guadalupe, Colombia -- Soukous, Afro-Funk, Tropical Disco, Cumbia -- timeless rhythms to warm the heart and move the feet.

2011/02/17

really excited to play after Konono No. 1 in Leipzig next week. following their eyes rolling back, bodies epileptic ecstatic energy levels, going to be dropping a 2 hour set of 140+ BPM Proper BangingHARD STYLE African dance grooves both classic and modern.

and 3 days before that, something local and much more low-key, will be doing another groove session at Cake Club. this place is always jumping even on Mondays... will be joined for the first time by MC Galina, we're going to be rocking in relaxed mode all night long.

2011/02/16

After the Valentines Day Love-Mix, the mood swings all the way back: 2 hours of dark and heavy doom-step with lots of Arabic, African, and Asian flavors -- from last friday's show on Reboot FM in Berlin. Against both political oppression and cultural hegemony: RESIST!!!

catch me first friday of every month from 12-2AM (Berlin time), streaming worldwide at www.reboot.fm

2011/02/11

Historically the Afro-Caribbean connection has produced so much amazing music about romantic love. Particularly, Angola and Cape Verde has developed specific strands of musical expression which focus on a special feeling: that of loss and longing, of desire and nostalgia, of love mixed with sadness. (an example most are familiar with would be the Cape Verdean Morna artist Cesaria Evora) I firmly believe that the best love songs in the world are actually about not having it, and this mix is saturated with this vibe: hearts and lonely hearts roll into one.

Since Zouk arrived (back) in Africa from the Guadeloupe and Martinique islands, where rhythms and melodies of the African "expats" mixed with Rumba, Calypso, Gwo Ka, Compas, Reggae, and even Salsa (and where they must have looked across the ocean with infinite longing for home), it has since been influenced by another deeply emotional music: Portugese Fado. Long story short, during the last few decades Zouk, Kizomba, and related styles have become IMMENSELY popular and ubiquitous in many parts of Africa.

But, sadly, we all know what this kind of huge commercial success does to a genre: it becomes cheap and watered down, and quantity replaces quality. Thus 99% of the modern Zouk and Kizomba we encounter today is tacky and paltry rubbish of incredibly bad taste, garishly saccharine instead of deeply moving like the Zouk of bygone years. Yet in this sordid state of affairs there are artists who are producing music which retain more than a touch of the golden years, making songs that are soul stirring as they are irresistible on the modern dance floor. So if one digs deeper, there IS such a thing as good contemporary Zouk and Kizomba: this is what i hope to convince people of, especially long time lovers of African music who have given up on these genres.

and, of course, to satisfy all you sweet loving freaks out there for Valentines Day :)